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Green Mission

Products

First to meet emission standards: Over the decades, our focus has been to address the twin concerns of fuel-efficiency and emissions. When legislation came in 1987, limiting vehicular emission, our vehicles were ready to meet them. In 1992 when more stringent norms for gaseous emissions were introduced, we were already offering eco-friendly engine technology thanks to our timely technology tie-ups. In 1996, when the permissible levels of gaseous exhaust emissions were tightened, we again met the norms with ease.

India’s first CNG-powered Bus was introduced in 1997 in Mumbai. Today, over 6,500 CNG buses ply on the roads of Delhi, Ahmedabad, Vijayawada and Mumbai.

India’s first Hybrid Electric Vehicle was showcased in 2002 marking the introduction of another alternative vehicle technology.

India’s first CNG Hybrid Plug-in Bus: which uses a combination of CNG and electricity was launched in 2010 and was in service during the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

The country’s first Hythane engine was developed in 2009. 20% of Hydrogen is added to CNG to make the engine more fuel efficient and to emit less than normal CNG engines.We were also the first in India to develop a common rail engine for commercial vehicles.

Beyond Products

To get the best out of our eco-friendly engine technology through reduced emissions, round-the-year awareness and action programmes are held at operator meets and service campaigns.

While our comprehensive all-India network of service and genuine parts outlets ensure scientific vehicle maintenance, regular training is also imparted to our dealers and customer service personnel at our service training centers and mobile training vans.

Driver Training We were one of the first auto companies to acknowledge the crucial need for well-trained commercial vehicle drivers. More than 3.5 lakh drivers have been trained at our Driver Training Institutes in Namakkal (Tamil Nadu) and Burari (near Delhi). More such institutes are being planned at Khaital (Haryana), Chindwara (MP), Rajasmand (Rajasthan), Chatia (near Bhubaneswar, Orissa) and Bangalore.

Processes:

Serious about protecting our environment we strive beyond compliance with the law to incorporate sound environmental practices into our business decisions and processes. A constant review of the processes has been resulting in modifications and replacements with eco-friendly ones.

India’s first commercial vehicle manufacturer to win the ISO 14001 certification – reflects our commitment towards ecology espoused in the Environmental Management System followed at all our manufacturing units.

First to achieve Zero Water Balance: – through various water conservation methodologies including rainwater harvesting, recycling and effluent treatment.

Waste Treatment: Treating waste to produce usable by-products and safe disposal of unused waste are the twin goals of effluent treatment plants, set up in all our Units including Ennore where 1.28 million litres of water is redeemed from sewage every day.

Some more examples of process changes keeping the ‘environment’ in mind:

Shot-blasting to sand-blasting to steel-shots: for surface cleaning treatment of rough materials and heat treatment scaling at Ennore that eliminates the possibility of silicosis. The blasting dust from the machines is collected by heavy duty dust collectors and go into the making of fire-crackers.

Containment of paint particles: At the modern paint shop at Hosur II, the paint particles in the paint booth are collected immediately by scrubbers to avoid exposure and adverse reactions.

Direct Induction Hardening was introduced at Ennore to eliminate the copper plating of camshafts before the carburising operation.

Increasing the green belt: More than 250,000 trees have been planted and there are over 162,000 meters of grasslands across the Company’s various plants.

Wind Energy

We ventured into the development of wind energy as early as 1995, with 11 wind mills (2.55 MW). Today, through continuous build-up of additional capacities, the combined wind energy capacity stands at 63.175 MW with 240 wind mills of different capacities ranging from 225 KW to 1250 KW wind electric generators, supplied by different wind turbine manufacturers. The wind farms are situated in Tamil Nadu.

100 million units of wind energy is generated every year and the entire energy is used for captive consumption Hinduja Foundries and us. More than 60% of our power requirement is met through wind energy.

A separate company in the name of Ashok Leyland Wind Energy Ltd has been formed to unlock the value in the wind energy business. This company focuses on development, operation and maintenance of wind farms with dedicated and experienced workforce to its credit.

Awards

Our manufacturing units in Bhandara and Hosur have won many environment management and conservation awards instituted by external agencies including the Golden Peacock. CII Awards on ‘water management’ have also been won consistently.

Our Corporate Office - a Green Building

Our Corporate Office has been awarded the LEED India for New Construction Certification by the Indian Green Building Council. It stands in a total built-up area of 192,000 square feet. Interestingly, not a single tree was cut in the entire construction process. Some other ‘green” aspects: 35 – 40% reduction in power consumption, efficient use of energy, water, materials and land, a high-performance double glazed glass to reduce heat ingress and better light transmittance, energy-efficient air-cooled chillers, eco-friendly refrigerant for chillers to avoid ozone depletion, energy-efficient internal and external light fixtures. use of building material with high content of re-cycled content, use of MDF and FSC certified wood, 30 – 40% reduction in potable water consumption and enhanced occupant comfort thereby higher productivity